Let’s have some real debates

It has given me a great deal of comfort over the past several months that our elected officials must have advanced degrees in political science, economics and military strategy. They expertly analyze what is wrong with the country—and the world—and then propose quick, easy and inexpensive fixes to correct the problems.

Then they lament that the problem lies with the White House, where our president refuses to listen to them and instead calls in experts from the military, universities and the scientific community to determine how to ignore the “right way” to do things.

Our presidential debates are filled with an abundance of discussion on Hillary Clinton’s emails to her daughter and Donald Trump’s corporate bankruptcies, plus the evils of Planned Parenthood and birth control, our international borders and Wall Street.

While other important issues are briefly revealed, the candidates say solutions are “doing something much different.” Yet they don’t provide any details as to how they’re “going to build a great wall, eliminate welfare and Obamacare, lower taxes, increase military spending, reduce government spending, give everyone a free college education.”

Isn’t the American public smart enough to witness a real debate? Why not have military personnel talk about how best to deal with ISIS? Can we examine the true costs, both monetarily and in American lives? How long would we have to occupy these countries? Which ones? Can we afford it for the long term? And, please, remember those “boots on the ground” will be worn by our grandchildren, not disposable robots.

I realize there’s an overwhelming threat to world peace and something needs to be done. But I want to hear debates of the true experts, not evangelical preachers or secularists, not junior senators from Texas and Kentucky, and definitely not those adjusting their rhetoric in order to garner campaign donations. I want to see real professionals with the education and experience to analyze these issues. Maybe then I can better decide how I should vote.

We claim to be an educated and enlightened country, but we sure don’t function like one.